Cord attachment means for upholstery spring



Dec. 11, 195 1 E SAMEL CORD ATTACHMENT MEANS FOR UPHOLSTERY SPRING FiledNov. 24, 1947 INVENTOR.

1 Manuel Sa Mel HTTOPNE) Patented Dec. 11, 1951 UNlTED STATES CORD A TACMENT MEANS FOR UPHOLSTERY SPRING Claims.

My present invention relates to cord attachment means for upholsteryspring and more particularly to such a device which may be used with astandard type of upholstery spring for permitting the cords normallyused for tying the springs together in a spring assembly to be readilyand securely attached thereto in a manner superior to the prior artmethods of assembling upholstery constructions and in a much shortertime than has heretofore been required when operating accordin to priorart commercial practices.

It has been customary for many years to use substantially helicalsprings in making up upholstered furniture, these springs usually havinga somewhat smaller diameter intermediate their endsthan at the endsthereof, although this is relatively immaterial from the point of viewof the present invention. In assembling such springs into an article offurniture it is customary, for example, in making a chair or sofa bottomor seat, first to build a frame of some rigid material, such as wood,then to support the lower ends of the springs to form the seat, or therear ends when a back is being formed, to the lower or rear face of theframe by the use of webbing, usually arranged in bands secured at theirends to the frame and sewed together and to the lowermost or rearmostends of the springs by strong thread or cord. Other arrangementsequivalent thereto from the present point of view have been suggestedfor securing the rear or lowermost ends of the springs to the frame andfor locating the springs with their axes all substantially parallel andin a desired distribution pattern.

The upper or forward ends of the springs have customarily been connectedtogether and to the uppermost or forward parts of the frame by the useof quite heavy cord, which in accordance with prior art practices isusually cut into suitable lengths;,t hen one end is secured to a part ofthe frame in the formin of a single pass.

The cord is then extended to the nearest spring to be connected in thispass and a kot made between the cord and the endmost or some other turnof the spring adiacent to the end, this knot being made non-slipping asto the cord by pulling the end of the cord through a loop in forming oneor two half hitches or some other similar type of knot. The cord hasthen customarily been extended across the spring and been connected to aturn substantially diametrically opposite the first point ofconnectionby a similar knot. In like manner the cord is attached to each spring ina row, and then thfi Other end finally attached to the frame oppositethe point of attachment of the first-named end.

In carrying out this operation it is necessary first to cut off suitablelengths of cord from a supply of an indefinite length upon a reel orother suitable dispensing package (a time consuming process which myinvention eliminates); then, in making each knot to pull the free endthrough a loop one or more times. The knot, after having been formed,may be non-slipping as to the cord, but can and does during subsequentuse rnove endways as to the Wire of the spring, causing eventualmisalignment and toppling of the springs. The whole operation in forminga chair or sofa bottom is tiresome and time-consumin in the extreme.

A general object of the present invention is to provide a means, whichis attachable to a standard upholstery spring and which providesportions to which the cord usually used in tying the upper or forwardends of the springs together may be attached, so that it will be ineifect attached to the spring itself.

The present invention is thus a continuationin-part of my prior andco-pending application Ser. No. 769,891, flled August 21, 1947, entitledUpholstery Spring Construction and Method of Assembling Same.

In this prior application, there is disclosed means rigid or integralwith the spring itself to which the cord could readily be attached andalso a method of assemblin such springs into an assembled unit for usein upholstered furniture, the unit usually being assembled in situ. Thepresent invention contemplates the use of standard type springs, whichmay be purchased at relatively low cost and which are readily available,and provides an attachment means which may be secured to such a standardspring to provide the advantages set forthin detail in my priorapplication and which are also functional objects of the presentapplication. The construction of the present invention lends itself tocarrying out the method of my prior application, the present applicationbeing restricted to the construction of the co d attachment means and tothe combination thereof with a standard spring.

Among the more specific objects of the present invention are to providea means which may be simply and cheaply made of relatively inexpensivematerials and which may be easily and quickly attached to a standardupholstery spring, this means providing a plurality of irregularportions to which the bight of a cord may be securely connected in themaking of a sprin assembly either as an independent assembly, such asthose used in the construction of sofa cushions or mattresses, or anassembly made in situ and used, for example, on the seat or back portionof a chair, a sofa and the like.

A further object of the present invention is to provide means of thecharacter hereinabove set forth which may be made either of a singlepiece of wire, suitably bent to a desired shape, or from sheet materialby a stamping and bending operation; and in either case providing aplurality of cord attachment portions and a plurality of gripping meansby which the device as a whole may be secured to any conventionalupholstery spring.

A further object of the invention is to provide a device of thecharacter set forth, which is preferably of substantially circularcontour and which may thus be made to conform to a turn, usually theendmostturn, of an upholstery spring to provide rigidly therewith cordattachment portions to which the bight of a cord may be securelyattached in making up the spring assembly. The means for attachment ofthe device of the present invention to a standard spring preferablycomprise attachment means provided adjacent to each of the cordattachment portions, so that when the spring is assembled into a springassembly secured together by cords, the points of attachment of the cordwill be in effect rigid with the spring itself.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a constructionas aforesaid which may be formed by suitably bending a single piece ofwire, preferably by providing flattened loops substantially oppositelydirected in respect to each other to provide each of several irregularportions, to which the bight of a cord may be securely attached in arapid manner without requiring the pulling through of a cord end througha loop in forming a satisfactory knot.

A further detailed object of the present invention is the provision of adevice constructed from a single piece of wire as aforesaid, wherein themeans for attaching the device to a standard spring comprises aplurality of pairs of flattened loops, the members of each pair beingclosely adjacent to, if not substantially opposite, one another alongthe longitudinal extent of the wire, and the loops being arranged to bebent around to embrace the wire of a standard spring.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a particularshape of the irregular portions formed of a wire or by a stamping andshaping operation, which will insure the assembled device from havingany parts liable to project into and damage upholstery materials whichare adapted to be used over the spring assembly.

Other and more detailed objects of the present invention will appearfrom the following specification and appended claims, when considered inconnection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure l is a view substantially in perspective, showing a single springof standard type with which is associated a device formed of bent wirein accordance with the present invention, a portion of one of the cordssecuring the spring in an assembled position being also shown;

Fig. 2 is a view substantially in plan of the cord attachment meansshown in Fig. 1 prior to its being attached to a spring in its normalposition for use;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary view substantially in elevation showing thedevice of Fig. 2 attached to the upper or endmost turn of a standardspring;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary view on an enlarged scale of a portion of thedevice of Figs. 1 to 3, illustrating the construction of a singleirregular portion and an adjacent spring gripping means or portion alongthe length of the wire;

Fig. 5 is a view substantially in transverse section of the spring wiregripping means as seen on the line 5-5 of Fig. 4, the parts being shownin assembled position;

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary view of the parts shown in Fig. 5 as seen fromone side thereof;

Fig. 7 is a view principally in perspective of a construction similar tothat shown in Fig. 6, but showing a modified form thereof;

Fig. 8 is a view generally similar to Fig. 2, but showing a device inaccordance with the present invention which may 'be formed by a cuttingand/or stamping operation from sheet metal;

Fig. 9 is an edge view of the device of Fig. 8; and

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary view in perspective illustrating the manner inwhich a device shown in Figs; 8 and 9 can be attached to a turn of astandard spring.

Turning now to Fig. l of the accompanying drawings, there is illustrateda. conventional upholstery spring I, which is shown as having a smallerdiameter intermediate its ends than at its ends. It will be understood,however, that the invention is not limited to use with such a spring,but may be similarly used with a spring in the form'of a substantiallytrue helix having a uniform general diameter. The lower or rear .endportion of the spring I may be secured as illustrated at 2 to bands ofwebbin 3 and 4. This is a usual construction and is shown merely toillustrate a conventional mounting for the rear or lower end of thespring I.

As set forth hereinabove, and in detail in my prior application abovereferred to, the problem with which the present invention is concernedis the tying together of the upper or outer ends of a group of springssuch as shown at I, which ends correspond to that end shown at the topin Fig. 1. As taught in my prior application, it is desired to securethese upper or outer ends together by cord, pieces of which are arrangedat least in two directions at about right angles to one another, thecord being suitably attached at the ends of the passes to a frame withwhich the spring assembly is to be associated. My prior applicationaforesaid provided rigid or integral portions on the upper end portionof the springs for attachment to the cord. These portions were formed asa part of or on the springs. This required special provisions to be madein the construction of the springs themselves. The present inventioncontemplates the use of standard springs, to each of which the device ofthe present invention is attached in a suitable way and which providesirregular portions to which the cords tying the springs together may besecurely attached without the necessity of pulling a cord end through aloop in forming a knot. Thus the present invention provides all thedesirable advantages set forth in my prior application, while at thesame time using standard type springs. The device of the presentinvention may be made in a number of different forms, some of which areshown in the accompanying drawings and hereinafter described. whileothers will occur to those skilled in the art from the disclosure hereingiven.

One form of cord attachment means'is shown in Figs. 1 to 6 inclusive ofthe drawings. This form of the invention is made from a single piece ofmetallic wire, suitably bent to form (a) a plurality of cord attachmentportions or irregular portions to which the cord may be attached, and(b) a plurality of means for securing the device of the presentinvention to a conventional upholstery spring.

The device may be formed initially as particularly shown in Figs. 2, sothat it will be substantially of a circular form as to its generaloutline and thus arranged for attachment to a turn, usually the endmostturn, of a spring such as I. As shown a piece of Wire 5v of suitablelength has substantially circular portions 6. At suitable intervalsangularly spaced around the general center of the device there arearranged a plurality of cord attachment portions, each of which isgenerally indicated at 1. Due to the fact that springs are usuallyattached together by passes of cords disposed at substantially rightangles to one another and as it is customary that the cord be attachedto substantially diametrically opposite portions of the spring, it isusually desired that there be at least four of the cord attachmentportions 1 disposed at approximately 90 to each other. On the otherhand, any desired number, greater or less than four, may be provided inaccordance with the desires of the trade. In this connection eight maysometimes be provided, arranged at about 45 to one another, so as topermit the use of diagonal passes of cord as well as the right anglepasses. Each of the irregular portions 1 may be formed as a pair offlattened loops 8 and 9, which are arranged to project inwardly andoutwardly respectively in substantially radial alignment with oneanother as shown. These loops are disposed principally in the plane ofthe wire 5 as a whole, but have their end portions turned downwardly asshown at l and II. Thus when the entire assembly is completed andupholstery material placed above the assembled springs (considering themin the position shown in Fig. 1 as for a chair seat), the ends of theloops 8 and 9 will not tend to project up through the upholsterymaterial used with the spring assembly and to damage it during thesubsequent use of the article of furniture with which the device isused.

Means are provided for suitably securing the device of the presentinvention and which is shown in Fig. 2 to a conventional spring such asthe spring I shown in Fig. 1. Such securing means are preferablyprovided adjacent to each of the cord attachment portions I, so thatthese portions will be in effect rigid with the spring 1 during thesubsequent use of the device. As shown, these attachment portions mayeach comprise a pair of loops generally indicated at l2, which may beformed similar to the cord attachment portions 1, but which usually donot require as long loops as those shown at 8 and 9 as the function ismerely to attach the device to the wire of the spring l. forming of thedevice of the present invention, the pairs of loops 12, each includingan inwardly directed loop I3 and an outwardly directed loop 14, may beformed substantially in the plane of the wire 5. In the assembly of thedevice of the present invention with a spring such as l, the loops I3and It may be bent downwardly about a portion of the wire of the spring1 as best shown in Fig. 5. This maybe eifected In the initial other wayby which the result maybe secured. The means for accomplishing theattachment of the device of the present invention form no part of thatinvention, it being contemplated that any suitable means foraccomplishing this pur pose including the use of hand tools may beresorted to.

Once the device shown in Fig. 2 has been assembled with the spring asjust described and as shown in detail in Fig. I, the spring as a wholemay be employed as shown in that figure for at:- taching it in a springassembly by means of the webbing strips 3 and 4 and securing the upperends by means of a cord as shown at It, Fig. 1,

which may be connected to the irregular portions 1 by any desired typeof knot, which can be formed by a bight of the cord; such a knot isshown generally at I! in Fig. 1.

It will be understood that if desired the lower ends of a plurality ofsprings I may be secured in position to strips 3 and 4 prior to theattachment to the spring I of the device of the present invention shownin Fig; 2. Thus it is contemplated that the device of the presentinvention may be used in repairing upholstered furniture withoutremoving the original springs from their position, if such an operationis desired, the order of the steps of the assembly not being critical.

Furthermore, while there is shown in Fig. 2 a device which, whilegenerally of circular contour, is arranged for attachment to an upperturn of a spring wherein the ends'of this turn are ofiset from oneanother as shown. so that the device has two offset ends l8 and I 9, asshown in Fig. 2,

i it is contemplated that the device could be made as a substantiallytrue circular construction with the ends [8 and I9 connected to oneanother and in a true circular arrangement.

While the device of the present invention, as shown in Figs. 1 to 6, isgenerally circular in arrangement, this circular contour is itself notessential, the essential part being that a device be provided, firstwith means for attaching it to a standard spring, and second with meansproviding a plurality of cord attachment portions, so that once thedevice is attached to a spring, a bight of a cord may be attached tothat device and hence therethrough to the spring at a plurality ofpoints angularly spaced in respect to the spring.

As shown in Fig. 7, the loops l3 and I4 jointly comprising the means l2for attaching of the device of the present invention to a spring may beslightly ofiset from one another along the length of the principal partof the wire 5, so that when they are bent around a portion of a standardspring as shown at I5, they will lay on one side of each other and mayoverlap in a direction around the wire portion l5. This detail is shownin the Fig. '7 form of the invention and is to be considered avariant'of the form shown in Figs. 1 to 6,.which may be employed at anyone or more points of attachment of the device of the present inventionto the spring itself.

While there is but a single attachment means shown associated with aspring in the forms of the invention illustrated in the drawings, Icontemplate that two or more attachment elements, each according to thepresent invention, may be used if desired or necessary.

In Figs. 8 to 10 inclusive there is shown another form of the invention.In this casethe device, which is generally indicated at Zll may beformed by a punching or stamping operation from sheet in practice by asuitable die operation or in any 5 metal, the device being shaped toprovide a substantially annular band or ring portion 2|. This ringportion 2! may be truly annular and endless as above described for theform of the device made from wire, or it may be formed as shown withradially offset ends 22 and 23, or a device of the shape of Fig. 8 maybe formed first as a truly circular band, which is thereafter broken orcut at one point to provide the two ends 22 and 23 and then the deviceas a whole bent slightly to the form shown particularly in Fig. 8. Anysuitable means of forming it may be employed, such means being obviousto those skilled in the arts from the present description.

The device 20 may be provided with a plurality, in this case four pairs,of proj ections as shown at 24 and 25, each pair, generally indicated at26, forming an irregular cord attachment portion. The projections 24 and25 are preferably in substantially radial alignment with one another, inthe same way as the loops 8 and 9 of the form of the invention of Fig.2, and are designed to serve the same purpose. If desired, the portionsmay be suitably bent as illustrated at l and II in Fig. 3 for the priorform of the invention pre-- viously described and for the same purpose.Further, if desired, the flat sheet metal from which the device 20 iscut may be suitably molded into a smooth exterior surface, so as toprevent or reduce the possibility of sharp edges which might tend toshear the cord which is to be attached thereto as shown at I! in Fig. 1.

Means are also provided for attaching the device 20 to a turn, such asthe endmost turn, of a spring such as I. For this purpose there isprovided, preferably adjacent to each of the cord attachment portions20, a means here shown as a pair of tabs 21 and 28. While the tabs 21and 28 could be arranged radially opposite one another substantially asdisclosed for the loops l3 and H, they are shown as offsetcircumferentially from each other so as to be radially out of alignmentand so as not to interfere with each other when they are respectivelybent around a portion l5 of the spring I as is shown in Fig. 10. In thisfigure the tabs are shown in the final desired position, each gripping apart of the wire l5 of the spring I.

The use of the device of Figs. 8 to 10 will be the same as thatpreviously described for the other form of the invention, so that thisdescription will not be repeated.

In general, after device in accordance with the present invention hasbeen attached to a spring, the assembled spring device may then beincorporated in a spring assembly in a way which will now be obvious tothose skilled in the art and which is particularly described and claimedin my prior and co-pending application Ser. No. 769,891 above referredto.

While there is herein shown and described but two principal forms of thepresent invention, other variants thereof will be apparent from theforegoing to those skilled in the art. I do not wish to be limited,therefore, except by the scope of the appended claims, which are to beconstrued validly as broadly as the state of the prior art permits.

What is claimed is:

1. The combination with an upholstery spring having a longitudinal axisof symmetry and hav- 1 ing a series of substantially helicalconvolutions arranged symmetrically about said axis, of cord attachmentmeans secured to an end convolution of said spring, said cord attachmentmeans comprising a member having a body portion shaped substantially toconform to said end convolution, means integral with said memberattaching it to said end convolutions at a plurality of pointsthereabout, parts of said member arranged to provide cord loop receivingmeans projecting inwardly therefrom towards said axis, and other partsof said member arranged to provide additional cord loop receiving meansrespectively substantially opposite the first named cord loop receivingmeans and projecting outwardly from said member away from said axis.

2. The combination in accordance with claim 1, wherein said cordattachment means is made from a single piece of metallic wire bent toform said parts and also having portions bent to grip a turn of saidspring.

3. The combination in accordance with claim 1, wherein said cordattachment means is formed from a single sheet metal member cut out andpreshaped to provide said means integral with said member for attachingit to said end convolution, and further to provide all said parts whichare arranged to provide the cord loop receiving means.

4. The combination in accordancawith claim 1, wherein said cordattachment means is made as a single sheet metal member of generally chcular contour in the plane of the metal sheet, wherein said meansintegral with said member for attaching it to said end convolutioncomprise a plurality of pairs of tabs, the tabs of each of said pairsextending generally radially inwardly and outwardly respectively withrespect to the generally circular contour of said member and the tabs ofeach of said pairs being adjacent to but out of radial alignment witheach other, so as to permit each such tab to be bent around a part ofsaid end convolution of said spring without interference with the othertab of such pair, and wherein said member is further shaped to provideall said parts which are arranged to provide the cord loop receivingmeans.

5. A cord attachment means for use in conjunction with an upholsteryspring, which spring has a longitudinal axis of symmetry and a series ofsubstantially helical convolutions arranged symmetrically about saidaxis, and wherein said cord attachment means is adapted for attachmentto an end convolution of said spring, said cord attachment meanscomprising a member having a body portion shaped substantially toconform to said end convolution. means integral with said member forattaching it to said end convolution at a plurality of pointsthercabout, parts of said member arranged to provide cord loop receivingmeans projecting inwardly therefrom in directions toward said axis whensaid member is attached to an upholstery spring, and other parts of saidmember arranged to provide additional cord loop receiving meansrespectively substantially opposite the first named cord loop receivingmeans and projecting outwardly from said member in directions away fromsaid axis when said member is attached to such an upholstery spring.

6. A cord attachment means in accordance with claim 5, wherein said cordattachment means consists of a single piece of wire, portions of whichare bent into loops to provide said means integral with said member for.attaching to an end convolution of an upholstery spring, and otherportions of said wire being bent to provide all said cord loop receivingmeans.

'7. A cord attachment means for use in conjunction with an upholsteryspring for the attachment of cord to tie said spring into a springassembly, said cord attachment means consisting of a single piece ofwire and being bent to provide a plurality of irregular portionsarranged to be disposed at angularly spaced points of a predeterminedturn of said spring when said cord attachment means is secured to such aspring, each of said irregular portions forming a means for attaching abight of cord thereto, and said a piece of wire being further bent toprovide means for attaching the cord attachment means to the upholsteryspring, the last named means comprising a plurality of attaching means,each of which comprises two flattened loops of the wire formed closelyadjacent to each other and adjacent to each of said irregular portionsof the wire and extending in respectively opposite directions from thewire, so that these flattened loops may be bent around the wire of aturn of the upholstery spring to secure the cord attachment means firmlyto said upholstery spring adjacent to each of said irregular portions ofthe cord attachment means.

8. A cord attachment means for use in conjunction with an upholsteryspring for the attachment of cord to tie said spring into a springassembly, said cord attachment means consisting of a single piece ofwire and being provided with a plurality of irregular portions arrangedto be disposed at angularly spaced points of a predetermined turn ofsaid spring when said cord attachment means is associated with suchspring, each of said irregular portions being formed by bending the wireto provide a pair of elongate flattened loops disposed substantiallyopposite one another along the general longitudinal extent of said wire,each of said irregular portions forming a means for attaching a bight ofcord thereto, and means for attaching said cord attachment means to aturn of said spring; the last named means comprising a plurality ofgripping parts, each of which parts comprises two flattened loops of thewire formed closely adjacent to each other and adjacent to each of theirregular cord attachment portions of the wire and extending inrespectively opposite directions from the wire, so that these flattenedloops may be bent around the wire of a turn of the upholstery spring tosecure the cord attachment means firmly to the spring adjacent to eachof the cord attachment portions respectively of the cord attachmentmeans.

9. A cord attachment means for use in conjunction with an upholsteryspring for the attachment of cord to tie said spring into a springassembly, said cord attachment means consisting of a single piece ofwire and being provided with a plurality of irregular portions arrangedto be disposed at angularly spaced points of a predetermined turn ofsaid spring when said cord attachment means is associated with suchspring, each of said irregular portions being formed by bending the wireto provide a pair of elongate flattened loops disposed substantiallyopposite one another along the general longitudinal extent of said wire,each of said irregular portions forming a means for attaching a. bightof cord thereto, and means for attaching said cord attachment means to aturn of said spring; said cord attachment means being of generallycircular contour, so as to adapt it for attachment to an endmost turn ofan upholstery spring, each of said elongate flattened loops beingarranged substantially in the plane of the circular contour of the cordattachment means, but with the end portions of such loops bent in adirection of the opposite end of the spring to which said cordattachment means is to be attached, so asto prevent the ends of theflattened loops projecting into and damaging upholstery material whichis thereafter adapted to be disposed above and outside the end of thespring with which the cord attachment means is associated during thesubsequent use of the entire assembled spring construction.

10. The combination with an upholstery spring, of cord attachment meansarranged to be secured to an endmost turn of said spring for theattachment of cord to tie said spring into a spring assembly, said cordattachment means consisting of a single piece of wire bent into agenerally circular contour of substantially the same diameter as theendmost turn of said spring to which it is to be attached, said wirebeing .further bent to provide a plurality of irregular portions atpredetermined angularly spaced points, each of said irregular portionsforming a means for attaching a bight of a cord thereto, each of saidirregular portions being formed by bending the wire into a pair ofoppositely extending fiattened loops arranged substantially in radialalignment with one another and disposed principally in the plane of theendmost turn of the spring, the end portions of each of said flattenedloops being turned downwardly out of the plane of said endmost turn ofthe spring and toward the opposite end thereof, and means for attachingsaid cord attachment means to said endmost turn of the spring, the lastnamed means comprising a pair of attachment loops adjacent to each ofsaid irregular portions, said attachment loops being formed by bendingthe wire into fiattened loops extending from points along the wireadjacent to one another and in substantially opposite directionsradially inwardly and outwardly respectively from the general circularextent of the wire, and said attachment loops being adapted to be bentover to engage said endmost turn of the spring, so as rigidly to securesaid cord attachment means thereto adjacent to said irregular portionsrespectively.

EMANUEL SAMEL.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the flle ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 582,412 Chase May 11, 1897608,048 Jackson July 26, 1898 803.933 Smith Nov. 7, 1905 849,088 SmithApr. 2, 1907 1,718,522 Brandreth June 25, 1929 2,001,964 Kimbrig May 21,1935 2,433,418 Bloch Dec. 30, 1947 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date388,803 France June 11, 1908

